Ruth First is assassinated in Mozambique

Ruth First, journalist, academic, anti-apartheid activist and member of the South African Communist Party, was brutally killed by a letter bomb in Maputo, Mozambique, sent by South African government agents. First had left South Africa for the second time with her husband, Joe Slovo, during the height of anti-apartheid campaigns. At the time of her death, First was a lecturer at the Eduardo Mondlane University. Her funeral in Maputo was attended by presidents, members of parliament and envoys from 34 countries.